Design > Ivat Unit
Ivat Unit
Birch Plywood/2023
The Ivat Unit is a modular furniture unit designed to accommodate the aesthetic and functional needs of the ever-changing life of its users.
The unit is composed of two components which can be taken apart and rearranged to create new forms that can serve different functions. These forms include benches, tables, dining chairs, and many more variations.
Ivat Early RendersWhen I first had the idea for the Ivat Unit I knew I wanted to focus on the functionality of the furniture and leave it devoid of ornamentation to invite the users to modify and personalize their unit as they saw fit. Again, I wanted to emphasize that this furniture would give the user autonomy in the design.
Originally I was drawn to the cold, brutalist qualities of concrete for the ‘cube’ component, which would be juxtaposed with a plastic ‘branch’ as the removable part.
Concrete/cement cast results
After a lot of experimentation with various concrete mixes in an attempt to achieve the lightest possible concrete cast, I decided that it would be unfeasible to reasonably construct such a heavy object. In response I switched to using plywood in favor of its accessibility and price.
For the gallery install I wanted to contexulize the unit in a lived in space, using items from my home to create a room of my own. Finally as an ode to IKEA’s ingenious designs, I created a tiny manual meant to inform the users of a few design possibilities as well as the materials included in the unit.
